Roma in Città metropolitana di Roma Capitale, Latium, Rome, Italy — Central Italy (Tyrrhenian Coast)

Pietro Mascagni

Spudgun67 (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons, 2017

1. Pietro Mascagni Marker

Inscription.
In questo albertgo dal nome augurale
Pietro Mascagni
volle soggiornare nel MDCCCXC nell'ansiosa vigilia dell'ambito riconoscimento che segno il trionfo della Cavalleria rusticana

VII-XII-MCMLXIII
Centenario della nascita del musicista

[English translation of Italian text:]
In this hotel, with its auspicious name, Pietro Mascagni chose to stay in 1890 on the anxious eve of the coveted award that marked the triumph of "Cavalleria rusticana."

December 7, 1963
The 100th anniversary of the musician's birth.

Erected 1963.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Arts, Letters, Music. A significant historical date for this entry is March 5, 1890.

Location. 41° 53.974′ N, 12° 28.617′ E. Marker is in Roma, Lazio (Latium, Rome), in Città metropolitana di Roma Capitale. It is at the intersection of Piazza della Rotonda and Via del Pantheon, on the right when traveling north on Piazza della Rotonda. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: Piazza della Rotonda 63, Roma, Lazio 00186, Italy. Touch for directions.

Regionally, it is in Europe,

the European Union,

the Schengen Area,

a coastal Mediterranean country,

and the Western World.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Byzantine Empire

and specifically also the Roman Empire.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Lodovico Ariosto (here, next to this marker); Hotel del Sole (here, next to this marker); Piazza della Rotonda

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(here, next to this marker); Il Municipio di Buenos Aires (a few steps from this marker); Rione III Colonna / Colonna District III (within shouting distance of this marker); The Trevi-Pantheon Route (within shouting distance of this marker); Hotel Pantheon (within shouting distance of this marker); Pantheon (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Roma.

Regarding Pietro Mascagni. The hotel with the "auspicious name," upon which this plaque is affixed, is the Albergo del Sole al Pantheon, considered the oldest hotel in Rome. It was here that the 26-year-old Pietro Mascagni was staying in 1890 as his opera, "Cavalleria rusticana" (English: "rustic chivalry"), opened triunphantly after being selected as one of three winners of a contest to write a new one-act opera. The opera premiered on May 17, 1890, with Italy's Queen Margherita in the audience, and it was an immediate hit. Mascagni completed 15 operas and many other works in his lifetime. He died in Rome in 1945.

Also see . . .
1. Antico Albergo del Sole al Pantheon: Our History.

Excerpt:
Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, August 2, 2025

2. Markers in Piazza della Rotunda
This marker is on the building straight ahead to the left. The Pantheon is off-camera to the right, a short distance away.
"It is said that the first illustrious guest was Emperor Frederick III together with the soldiers in his retinue. Then, as attested by the marble signs on the façade, the hotel has gone down in history for having had distinguished visitors, from Ludovico Ariosto, who lived there in the early sixteenth century after arriving in Rome to honor Pope Leo X, to the mysterious alchemist Cagliostro who stayed there in 1768. And it was here that Mascagni stayed for the triumphant premiere of the Cavalleria Rusticana, held on May 17 in 1890 at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome."

(Submitted on September 7, 2025, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

2. Pietro Mascagni, a pioneer of verismo opera, and a man of many passions. The Chicago Symphony Orchestra website looks back at the life and works of Pietro Mascagni.

Excerpt: “Riccardo Muti, who led the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus in three concert performances of Cavalleria rusticana in 2020, considers the work 'a great opera,' he said in an interview with critic Dennis Polkow on WDCB-FM. 'It’s an opera that the entire operatic world loves and wants to hear.'”

(Submitted on September 6, 2025, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

Pietro Mascagni (center) image. Click for full size.

Courtesy of Cornell University Library, Making of America Digital Collection, circa 1890

3. Pietro Mascagni (center)

Mascagni is pictured with the librettists he collaborated with for "Cavalleria rusticana," Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti (left) and Guido Menasci (right).

Credits. This page was last revised on September 7, 2025. It was originally submitted on September 6, 2025, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 74 times since then and 12 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on September 6, 2025, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.